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Youth Confirmation Program

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Dec 132011

: Confirmation at the Cathedral

“Where is my ministry?” “What gifts can I share?”

Confirmation will help answer these questions.

As The Book of Common Prayer states, “confirmation is the rite in which we express a mature commitment to Christ, and receive strength from the Holy Spirit through prayer and the laying on of hands by a bishop.” It can be a powerful time of spiritual development, as we claim our faith & voice. Confirmation involves a period of study, reflection & prayer, and culminates in a conscious decision on the part of the teen to be confirmed.

Our confirmation program will begin in January 2012. As has been our tradition, we will celebrate confirmation at Christ Cathedral with the Bishop and other Diocesan churches on Saturday, May 19, 2012.

In preparation for the May confirmation, we will offer a separate youth program, as I believe that the faith issues facing teens are significantly different than those facing adults. An adult program will run simultaneously, giving us opportunities for intergenerational fellowship. Additionally, each teen will be paired with an adult mentor.

We will be using a curriculum called My Faith, My Life: A Teen’s Guide to the Episcopal Church. This curriculum balances activities in the five attributes of a healthy Christian community: study, fellowship, worship, prayer, and service. While giving teens a space for exploration, it’s grounded in our Episcopal traditions. Each candidate will receive a copy of the book and a Book of Common Prayer. They will be asked to read chapters in preparation for each session. Additionally, a Bible will be needed by each confirmand.

I know that everyone leads full lives with packed schedules. I also know that preparing for confirmation requires a dedication of time, heart, mind and soul. We are asking families of confirmands to commit to faithful & regular attendance at weekly worship, Holy Week services & our confirmation program. Program details are:

A 7-week class running on Sunday afternoons from 4 to 6pm.
Dates: 1/15; 1/29; 2/12; 2/19; 3/11; 4/1; 4/15
An instructed Eucharist (3/4 afternoon)
An overnight retreat (4/28-4/29)
A group service project (to be determined by teens)
Time spent with their mentor
A celebratory brunch for families & adult confirmands with the Bishop (5/13)
Confirmation at the Cathedral (5/19)

If you would like your teen to be part of the 2012 class, please contact me by January 8, 2012. If you have any questions about confirmation, please don’t hesitate to contact me; I’m here to support the spiritual development of your family.

God’s peace,

Heidi Gioia

Director of Youth Ministries

Peace Meal

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Dec 062011

A group of high schoolers & adults went to St. John’s church to prepare and serve the Peace Meal on Saturday, December 3rd. The Peace Meal is a ‘no questions asked’ free meal for the community. It’s advertised with signage outside the church, which sits across the street from Tower Grove Park. St. John’s hosts this dinner every Saturday night & recruits churches from across the Diocese to sponsor and/or serve the meal.

Our group enjoyed working with a couple of St. John’s parishioners as we created a spaghetti dinner & a fruit cobbler dessert. Before beginning service, we said a prayer, asking God to make us the hands and feet of Christ.

Over the two hours of service, we dished out many pounds of pasta, met people from the community & heard some of their stories. On the drive home, our group reflected on how rewarding it is to serve others.

There are more opportunities to serve!

2012 dates for St. Martin’s is serving the Peace Meal:

February 11, April 21, July 7, September 1 & December 1

If you’d like to help with a Peace Meal in 2012, please contact Wayne Peters, our St. Martin’s coordinator. There are also opportunities to monetarily sponsor a meal. A $100 donation provides a hearty meal for 50 to 7o people!

Bishop of Lui visits St. Martin’s

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Dec 062011

Bishop Stephen Dokolo and his wife Lillian from the Diocese of Lui, Southern Sudan were the special guests at St. Martin’s new Saturday 5:05 worship service on Dec. 3.

Bishop Stephen thanked St. Martin’s members for their past support and explained the great need for continued support for his diocese in Africa.

Youth members played drums and other percussion instruments and the children sang a special song to highlight the service.

Everyone welcomed Bishop Stephen and Lillian following the service at a special reception in Park Hall.

The Diocese of Missouri has been in a companion relationship with the Diocese of Lui, Southern Sudan since 2005. We voted to continue that relationship for another five years during this year’s Diocesan Convention.

St. Martin’s has supported the Diocese of Lui through prayer and several fundraising activities, including two “Walk for Water” events, which raised more than $20,000 to build clean water wells in Africa. Deacon Susan Naylor has also served on previous mission trips to Lui and has plans to return to Africa in the spring of 2012.

To view the slideshow from our evening with Bishop Stephen, please click on the arrow in the middle of the picture. You can also click the thumbnails along the bottom to go to an individual picture. Click the four arrows in the lower right corner to bring the pictures full-screen. Enjoy!

ECW Christmas Ornament for Sale

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Dec 012011

by Susan Gillies

The second annual St. Martin’s Christmas ornament has arrived! Add to your collection and purchase an ornament from the Episcopal Church Women between services in December.

This year’s ornament displays a stained glass window from the sanctuary and future ornaments will continue the series with additional windows from behind the altar.

If you missed the ornament last year featuring the mosaic on the outside wall of the church, there are still some available.

Please contact Susan Gillies if you would like to purchase an ornament.

ECW Cookie Exchange

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Dec 012011

by Susan Gillies

It’s cookie time! Please join the Episcopal Church Women for our annual cookie exchange on Tuesday, Dec. 13 at 6:30 p.m. We’ll meet in the Packwood Library.

Please bring at least three dozen cookies to share, a container to take cookies home for yourself, and a small appetizer to share. If you would like to participate in the gift exchange, please also bring a wrapped gift valued at $15 or less.

All women of the church and their friends and family are welcome. Please join us for a delicious evening!

December Lay Ministry Schedule

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Dec 012011

Click here to download an updated copy of the Lay Ministry Schedule for December.

If you are unable to serve on an assigned date, please get a substitute and notify Michelle Magee in the church office of the change.

If you have any special scheduling needs, please contact:

Readers, Chalice Bearers, Ushers, Greeters: Rebecca Barger

Acolytes: Bob Ecker

Children’s Worship: Julie Clark

Nursery: The Rev. Jon Hall

Worship with us at The 5:05

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Dec 012011

by The Rev. Emily Hillquist Davis

Yes, there is a new service at St. Martin’s! It’s called “The 5:05″ and we come together every Saturday evening at 5:05.

“The 505″ provides an opportunity for mellow, meditative, multi-sensory, come-as-you-are, Gospel-focused worship.

Hopefully the service will let the Gospel read you as we often hear it in various translations and voices and invite response in several modes.

We celebrate Communion in the round using lots of candles, the resonant bell and liturgies more recent than the 1979 BCP.

We are committed to changing up the liturgy with the seasons and incorporating worshipers’ insights, talents and preferences.

Pray for us. Play for us. Come and worship.

“Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right Spirit within me.”
Psalm 51:10

The 5:05 – Come. Let’s dip our toes in the oasis of God.

Here is a look at our December schedule:

Dec. 4 – African liturgy with Bishop Stephen from the Diocese of Lui.
Come early at 4:30 to be part of a drum circle and a stay late for a reception for our Bishop Stephen and his wife Lillian following the service.

Dec. 10 – Simple worship service

Dec. 17 – Blue Christmas
We’ll use the 4th Advent worship to acknowledge and strengthen those grieving loss as holidays loom large with bustle and pangs of remembering, while cheer seems mandatory. Please consider bringing a picture or symbol of the people or other losses you grieve. We will place these on the altar. No “show and tell” necessary. Anyone who wishes may stay afterwards for conversation and reflection.